Ironing board



June 8, 1954 W- A. SNYDER IRONING BOARD Filed Sept. 2, 1952 JNVENTOR. 705 N yp E g flTTORNEy,

Patented June 8, 1954 UNITED STATE TENT" OF F This invention relates toa foldable combination ironing board and table, which is of a spaceeconomizing character, being adapted for being housed in a cabinethoused in a recess in a wall, when not in use.

Among the objects of the invention are: to provide in a device of thekind to which the invention pertains an improved foldable structure foreconomizing space in a room wherein the device is installed or used; toprovide improved mean securely to maintain the ironing board proper in aplurality of adjusted positions; to provide a more durable, sturdystructure for an ironing board and table combination; and to provide anironing board structure with an accessory table top extending leafwhich, at the option of the user, may be adjusted so as to be usedeither as a part of the ironing board proper or as an extension of atable top.

Additional objects are: to provide an ironing board structure whereinthe ironing board proper may conveniently be installed for the use ofeither a right handed or left handed person, this being accomplished byproviding an ironing board proper which can be squarely reversed, sothat, when in its operative position alongside the wall of a room, itspoint portion will be directed to-- ward either the right or the left ofthe user; and

toprovide a double (mat times triple), thickness'of ironing board ortable top forming structure, which insures additional durability andstrength.

Other objects, advantages and features of invention will hereinafterappear.

Referring to the accompanying drawing, which illustrates a preferredembodiment of the inven tion, which has been reduced to practice,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the device shown in an extended, ironingboard forming position, a fragment of a cavitated part of a wall withwhich the device is associated being included in the view.

Fig. 2-is a reproduction of Fig. 1 except that the ironing board properis shown in full lines adjusted to another position, a third positionthereof being indicated in broken lines.

Fig. 3 is a front elevation showing the ironing board swung up into thealcove provided therefor.

Fig. 4 i a longitudinal section on line 4-4 of Fi 3;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged, fragmentary, sectional detail on line 5-5 of Fig.1.

Fig. 6 is a vertical section on line 56 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 7 is a vertical section on line 'i-'! of Fig. 6.

Fig; 8is an enlarged, fragmentary, sectional 2 detail, theplaneofsection beingv indicated. by line 88 .on Figs. 2 and 9.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary top planof thestructure shown in Fig. 8.

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary, horizontal section on line Ill-I0 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 11 is a perspective, reduced scale..view showing a tabletopwidening board hinged-to the ironing board proper.

Referring in detail to thedrawing, the ironing board proper I0 iscarriedby a baseboard H which is swingable in a vertical planeto andfrom a position whereinit is containedrin; an alcove [2 in anupstandingscabinet l3 shown fitted into a recess provided for itin aroom wall 14 fragmentarily shown. From theviewpointsof operation, and asexpressed inthe claims, the alcove i2 is to be regarded as apartof..the. .wall of the room in which the device isinstalled, for, ifdesired, the cabinet may be omitted andzthe alcove I2 be formed directlyin the. wall: Said base member II is desirablymade ofa thick board toone end portion of which is transversely secured a metal mounting stripIS-havingrightangular-1y directed end portions It. That end of the baseboard H which carries said strip,-at-al-l times is located within theaforesaidalcove l2, and is swingably connected to the. side portions ofthe cabinet by means of pivot formingscrews '20 which hinge said baseboard to theccabinet to swin between two positions in onev of which itextends horizontally out from the cabinet and in the other of which itextends .vertically and is contained in the cabinet alcove 12;

A combined braceand stop means is provided for the base member II toarrest the downswing of said member whenit reaches a horizontalposition, andtosupport it in that position. This mean comprises arectangularly U-shaped rod 25 having apertured end portions which,ateach side of the lower end portion of the alcove l2 :are. swingablyattached to-the cabinet by screws .26 which are shown extending throughmetal spacing strips 21 interiorly attached to thehcabinet. A keeperloop 28 carried by the'memberl I interlocks looselywith the mid-lengthpart of saidr-od to keep the rod in its operative position, anda stopforming cleat 29--is carried by said-member II in a position to engagetherod and arrest the downswing of said member I! when itreaches thehorizontal, operative position.

The means will now be described whereby the ironing board proper It isattached to the base 'member II in such a Way as to be held-securely ineither of the three adjusted positions thereof shown in Figs. 1 and 2.For this purpose said base board has cut, through it a multiple armedslot 35 shown as T-shaped, the stem part of its T shape extending alongthe midwidth of said base board and being directed toward its attachedend, whereas the crosshead of the T extends transversely of said baseboard. To the under side of the base board (viewed when horizontal), issecured a T-shaped plate 36 which is also furnished with a T-shapedslot, this slot registering with the slot in the board. In a spacedrelation to its inner end the ironin board proper, considering in itsoperative position, carries a downwardly extending countersunk bolt 40the shank of which extends with a loose fit through said registeringslots and the end of which closely underlies said plate 36, a wingedclamping nut ll screwing onto the projecting part.

of said bolt. Owing to the ends of said cross head of the T-shaped slotextending close to the edge portions of said base member II the bolt 40may be shifted close to either side of said base member where it iswidely spaced away from the opposite edge thereof, thus increasing themechanical moment so that the ironing board in its adjusted clampedposition extending either way across said base member affords a morestable support for the work being done upon it.

At its inner end the ironing board proper carries a projection 42designed to at times underlie a Wire keeper 43 that upstands from one ofthe side edges of the base board. Said keeper is shaped as a broad,short armed, rectangular U except that it has rightangularly deflectedend portions M which underlie and are attached to the lower surface ofthe base board. A transverse metal reinforcing strip 46 is preferablyattached, as shown, to the inner end portion of the ironing boardproper.

Also a transverse cleat or reinforcing strip 58 is shown underlying theouter end portion of the base board H and a notch is shown at themidwidth of said base board, this notch being also cut across saidcleat. At its midwidth the extended ironing board proper is shown havingattached to its under side a clip 53 carrying a pin 54 that at timesengages said notch 5i to prevent lateral shifting of the ironing boardproper.

A sleeve holder 55 is shown swingably attached at 56 to the rear part,of the alcove I2, and provided with a supporting U-shaped leg 5! whichcan be outswung so as to rest upon the top of the extended ironingboard, thus to support said sleeve holder in its operative position.

In Fig. 11 the ironing board proper ill is shown equipped with a tabletop widening adjunct which comprises a similarly contoured and similarlydimensioned board 60 attached to the member by a pair of hinges BI. Thisadditional part, when swung over to the full line position shown will beused to provide the ironing surface, and when swung out to the brokenline position will double the width of the table top into which thedevice may be converted. It is to be understood that this table topwidening member will be used only when the ironing board proper isadjusted so as to extend parallel to the wall of the room, either forright handed persons, as shown in Figs. 9 and 11, or for left handedpersons as indicated by broken lines in Fig. 2; in the latter case thepositions of its ends being reversed and the hinges 6| mounted on theopposite side of the two-part ironing board proper shown in Fig. 11.

Although the drawing shows the device swingably attached to a cabinet soas to swing into and out of the alcove afforded by said cabinet, and thecabinet contained in a wall recess therefor, yet as already stated, itis to be understood that the device may be operatively related to analcove formed directly in the wall of the room. In either case a doorwill be provided which, when closed will completely house in the device.

Preparatory to turning the ironing board proper from the outwardlydirected position shown in Fig. l to the position shown in Fig. 2wherein it extends parallel to the wall, the winged nut 4| (see Fig. 5),will be loosened and then said ironing board proper will be pulledfarther out from the wall till the screw bolt 40 occupies the crossheadportion of the T- shaped slot 36 and this part of the slot will aiford aclearance for the bolt so that the ironing board proper can be shiftedlaterally far enough away from the keeper 43 to allow it to be pointedin the direction shown in Fig. 2. Then it will be pushed into a positionwherein its end projection 42 will underlie said keeper, whereupon thewinged nut 41 will be tightened clamping the ironing board proper inplace. A reverse series of operations will be performed to change theposition of the ironing board proper back to the position thereof shownin Fig. 1. These operations are possible by reason of the fact that thedownwardly projecting bolt 40 is slidable from one to the other parts ofthe multiple slot, and vice versa.

The slot 36 could be L-shaped instead of T- shaped so far as concernsadjusting the ironing board proper in the manner which has just beendescribed, but said slot is shown T-shaped so as to qualify it for usein adjusting the ironing board proper not only in the manner which hasbeen described but also to and from the left hand position thereofindicated in broken lines in Fig. 2, in which case the wire keeper 43will be removed from the base board H and then reattached to theopposite side portion thereof.

I claim:

1. In a structure of the kind described, the combination, with a baseboard which is supportable in a horizontal position; of an ironing boardproper superimposed upon said base board, the latter having through it amultiple armed slot, one arm of which extends lengthwise of the boardand a second arm crosswise thereof, a bolt depending from said ironingboard proper and adjustable along and from one to the other and viceversa of the arms of said slot, and clamping means carried by said boltto clamp said ironing board proper in various adjusted relations to saidbase board with the bolt extending through either a lengthwiseorcrosswise arm of said bolt, said second arm of said slot having eachof its end portions so positioned as to approach closely to the sides ofsaid base board to provide a relatively large mechanical counter momentto the weight of the work imposed upon said ironing board when thelatter is adjusted to extend transversely in relation to the length ofsaid base board, and said bolt is positioned in one or the other of theend portions of the transverse portion of said T- shaped slot.

2. In a structure of the kind described, a base board supported in ahorizontal position, an ironing board proper superimposed upon said baseboard in a fiatwire manner, said base board having through it a slot apart of which extends transversely of said base board, a downwardprojection carried by said ironing board proper and extending slidablythrough said slot part, a

clamping member carried by said projection and clampable against thelower face of said base board, a keeper carried by a side portion ofsaid base board, said ironing board proper being adjustable by slidingsaid downward projection along said transverse slot part to and from aposition wherein a portion thereof engages said keeper so that thelatter co-operates with said clamping member to prevent the ironingboard proper from becoming malpositioned in relation to said base board,said slot having another part which extends lengthwise of said baseboard and alon which said downward projection of said ironing boardproper is also adjustable, said projection being slidable from one intothe other of said slot parts and vice versa, an end portion of said baseboard being notched, and a second downward projection carried by saidironing board proper and movable into and out of engagement with saidnotched part of said base board by the adjustment of said first recitedprojection along the part of said slot which extends lengthwise of saidbase board.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS BehmSept. 1'7, 1935

